A Good Night
by nygirl26
Summary: Futurefic Jim spends time with his girls Jim Pam Karen Toby


A Good Night

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Office, except my JKras love. Just a little break from finals week in honor of what I would like to see set up on The Office season finale. Oh, and one of the pairings in this is a shout-out to my faovirte ex-roomie.

Jim Halpert looked guiltily at his wife, "I really feel like I should stay." In turn Karen shot him as convincing a smile as she could holding an armful of toys and bottles and standing in the middle of two screaming toddlers. "Halpert, this is your grown-up time for the week, you deserve it. I'll just make sure they're on a sugar high next time I go for dinner." Jim grinned but continued to offer, "Kare, are you su-" "I am fine here. Jim seriously, this is your night. We only get one a week. Besides, you only get to see her once a month, you don't want to keep her waiting." Jim grabbed his wife and engaged her in a deep kiss. "Thank you. I love you." "I love you too" she responded softly, a calmer smile overtaking her face. "And I love you too" he said, grabbing a squirming toddler under each arm. He placed a kiss on each tiny forehead before lovingly but sternly instructing, "Be good for Mommy." With a final apologetic smile to his wife, he was out the door to meet his date.

Though Jim still felt some guilt over leaving Karen alone with their cranky children, he was excited for his night out. Not long after the birth of their daughter they had decided that each needed a grown up night. It had started out as once every few weeks, but after their son was born they decided to make it a once a week affair, mostly for Karen's sake. For the time being she was a stay at home mom. As he paused to grab a single rose from a vendor, he contemplated how that decision had come to pass. Once they were married they began to discuss having children. Both had always thought of having kids in an abstract sort of way, but in their discussions they came to the comclusion that children would be a definite. What they had not decided was who would take care of them. Once they found out she was pregnant Karen had surprised both of them by adamantly wanting to take a leave of absence to be home with the baby. Jim's corporate position more than took care of a comfortable lifestyle for the family, and Karen seemed genuinely happy to be home. She had spent most of her life overworking herself at one task or another, first as a straight-A student and star athlete, than as caretaker for her ailing mother, than as a sales rep moving quickly up the ladder. Taking some time off seemed to suit her.

As Jim rounded the corner and the restaurant he was heading to came into sight, his mind cleared. He loved his wife more than he ever could have imagined, and the life they shared was pretty close to perfection. But tonight was special. Once a month they came to their mutual favorite restaurants, alternating between New York and Philadelphia, and for a few hours he wasn't a father and husband, he wasn't in line to become eventual CEO, he was just Jim.

The minute he walked through the door he caught sight of her, looking lovely in a weather appropriate turtelneck and wool pants. She was already seated and he could see her nervously checking her watch. Within seconds she looked to the doorway and her eyes lit up. He was greeted with a warm smile as she motioned him over to the table. "Jim, I thought you were gonna stand me up. Again." An exasperated sigh escaped his upturned lips. "For chrissakes Beesley, that was two years ago. And if you remember I had a good reason, my wife going into labor and all." Pam rolled her good naturedly and replied, "Excuses, excuses" before jumping up to grab him in a hug.

As they sat down he pulled the rose from his deep coat pocket, offering it to her with a flourish.  
"This is for you. Congratulations." Pam's face flushed with happiness as she accepted the flower. "Thank you Jim, that was very sweet." Jim shrugged it off nonchalantly, but after all these years she was only one of two women he got such a thrill out of making smile. "So, let me see the rock" he instructed happily. Pam glowed, offering her left hand up for inspection. The ring was small, but charming, classic but not quite like anything he'd seen before. All in all it was suited perfectly for her. "It's beautiful Pam. So tell me, was Sascha thrilled?" Pam nodded cheerfully. "The day after we told her she spent her whole allowance on bridal magazines to bring over this weekend." Jim chuckled, "That's sweet. Have you thought at all about a date?" "We're thinking April, maybe early May." Jim's eyes widened, "Of this year? That's like four months away." Memories of his own year long engagement filled his mind, particularly the fact that it took Karen the full year to plan every detail perfectly. "Well yeah, I only have to look to the pictures of Phyllis' wedding to remember everything I planned the first time." The two shared a smile at this and after the waitress came to take their orders Pam spoke again.

"We really don't want anything too big. You know, he's been married before, and it's just not that important to me anymore. I just want us to be married, it doesn't matter how it happens." "Well, I hope I'm invited to this small affair. It better not be you, Toby and a justice of the peace." Pam smiled, "Of course you're invited Jim. And it won't be that. There's a cute little park about a half hour from the house, with a field and a stream. The flowers will just be blooming then too. We thought spring would be nice, a rebirth seemed like the good start to a marriage." Jim nodded encouragingly as the pair began to eat their overpriced but delicious meal. "That does sound really nice, very you." "And hopefully your presence will be required. I know you'll have to talk it over with Karen, but I have a proposition for you." Jim looked at his best friend solemnly, "Pam, I'm sorry. I know the three of us have come a long way, but I'm a family man. I cannot be your last fling." Pam snorted and Jim shot her a mock glare. "I am sorry for that Jim. I must leave now to call upon Dwight for the task." The pair laughed and then shuddered simutaneously at the thought. "After all this time, do you really want to prove Angela right with her hussy talk?" Pam giggled again before continuing, "Seriously though Jim, Toby and I would love if Kayla and Jackson were the flower girl and ring bearer."

Jim was touched and told Pam as much. "I'll run it by Kare tonight, but I'm sure she'll love the idea. Oh! I totally forgot, she offers you her sincerest congratulations as well." Pam smiled, "I think I got the message after she shrieked when you told her." Jim grinned at the thought of his wife's excitement, "She's just happy you two found each other. I have to give her credit, she called it way before I did." "So, speaking of the missus, how is she? And how are the kids?" "They're all fantastic. Karen was a little harried when I left, but she practically pushed me out the door so I wouldn't leave you waiting too long." "Anything new? How is Kaylie enjoying school?" Jim's face glowed with pride as he began to talk about his children. "She loves it, she's already one of the top readers in her class. And Jax is thrilled that he'll be starting library class in the fall." "That's adorable. Please thank Karen for the new pictures she emailed me. I just got them this afternoon and I was in a rush so I couldn't email her back, but they both look even cuter than I'd remembered. I can't believe how big they're getting. You must miss having little babies around."

Jim looked down shyly, "It's funny you should mention that..." Pam's eyes grew wide. "James Thomas Halpert, are you gonna be a daddy again?" Jim nodded happily. "She just finished her first trimester so we decided to start telling people. I thought it would be more fun to tell you in person." Pam leapt up to grab her friend in a tight embrace. "Jim, that's amazing! Congratulations." "Thank you", he replied, unable to wipe the smile from his face. "This is definitely it now. After Jackson was born we decided that one more sounded right. I think Karen also likes the idea of having a set date in her mind of when she'll be back to work. I mean, she loves staying home with the kids, but once their all in school she'd like to work again." "That totally makes sense. I really respect that she's taken so much time off though. She was always so driven, it must be hard to leave that behind for awhile." "I always thought it would be hard on her, that it would drive her crazy, but I've never seen her happier than these past few years. And speaking of babies, what about you Ms. Beesley? Any little Pam and Toby's in the future?" Pam shrugged, "If it happens it happens. We would both love it, but I'm getting older so we know there's a chance it won't happen, and we don't want to try all those treatments. If it doesn't happen for us we might adopt, but right now we're just gonna wait and see." Jim nodded agreeably. "Sounds like a plan." Jim checked his watch, not surprised to see it was already past ten. His nights with Pam always flew by. Grabbing his wrist, Pam let out a yelp. "Oh my gosh, I didn't realiize it was so late. We should probably get going." Jim nodded reluctantly and signaled the waitress over for the check. He pulled out his wallet immediately. Long ago they'd created the rule that whoever hosted the dinner paid, to prevent the inevitable fighting over who would pick up the check.

Jim helped Pam put on her coat and laid his arm around her shoulder as they walked out in companionable silence. The brisk January air broke the quiet mood and the two immediately set in on hailing Pam a taxi. Once that task was completed Jim turned to face Pam, a sad smile on his face. "So same time next month?" Pam looked up at him, a broad smile brightening her face. "Definitely. And, this is unofficial, but Toby was offered a great position in the city, and Sascha's mom has agreed that she's old enough to take the train back and forth, so if everything works out, in six months we might be neighbors." "Pamela Beesley, that is awesome news!" Jim high-fived her before helping her into the cab. "Give me a call when you're home, so I know you got there okay, alright?" Pam nodded easily, they requested it of each other after every meeting. Jim shut the door and tapped on the top, signaling to the driver that he was set to go, and Pam was gone again.

As Jim strolled the ten blocks back to his apartment, he contemplated how wonderful his life truly was. Pam's confession to him in front of their coworkers nine years ago had been the catalyst for two major revelations. One, that he was in love with Karen, and ready to make their relationship work, and two, that he missed Pam's friendship, that he wanted her by his side, as a friend. The three had worked together to fix their relationships and now almost a decade after it all started it seemed ridiculous that there had ever been a problem. Jim and Pam had rekindled their friendly relationship, and Pam and Karen had also forged a tight bond. He really did have a perfect life.

Jim waved to the doorman as he entered the building, happy to be back home. As he neared his apartment he listened for the tell tale signs of his children. Hearing only silence he crept quietly to the door, moving as stealthily as possible. Once he entered the foyer he saw Karen dozing on the couch, wrapped in an afghan, a novel by her side. Jim took the opportunity to just watch his wife for a few moments. Though over a full ten years had passed since they first met, Jim swore that Karen didn't look a day older. While she credit her fancy face creams to the lack of aging, Jim liked to think that their happiness had something to do with it. He was jolted from his reverie when a shiver passed shook Karen's small frame. He bent down to his wife's side. "Kari? Wake up babe." Karen stirred and her eyes opened slowly. She fixed him with a sleepy smile once she focused on him. "You're home. I missed you." Jim smiled back, charmed. Unless woken by the cry of a child, Karen woke slowly and was usually in an almost druken state for a few minutes. The filter on her brain never quite turned on right away, a fact that Jim adored about her. "I missed you too, Kare. Let's go to bed, okay?" She smiled and nodded, allowing him to pick her up an carry her to the bedroom. The two brushed their teeth, and as Karen continued, brushing her hair and washing her face, Jim went to check on his children.

Kayla slept peacefully curled up in her warm Disney Princess comforter. Jim placed a soft kiss on his daughter's forehead and picked up the beloved stuffed rabbit that had fallen from its sacred perch on her bed, once again returning it to its rightful spot beside her. "I love you Kayla" he whispered, before repeating the ritual in Jackson's room. Once he returned to his own bedroom Karen was asleep as he'd predicted. His fatigue hit him quickly and he changed quickly and quietly into his pajamas and climbed into bed. Jim looped his arms around his wife's still flat waist and pulled her back flush against his front. Within seconds he was asleep.

A few hours later a buzzing from his night stand awoke him. He reached for it quickly, attempting and succeeding to turn it off before it woke Karen up. "**Halpert, just wanted you to know I'm safe and sound back in Philly. Talk to you soon, good night**." Jim smiled and placed the phone gently back on the table. He looked at the girl lying beside him and thought about the one falling asleep in Philadelphia tonight. His two girls, the only two woman who called him Halpert, whose smiles brightened his day, who he loved. It was the once a month perfect day when he'd spent time with them both. Yes, tonight was a good night.


End file.
